EXPERT COMMENTARY

PHIL CATCHESIDE, NETWORK RAIL

In the first of a series of interviews with experts in the Rail industry and beyond, RailStaff spoke to Phil Catcheside, Head of Recruitment Marketing and Engagement at Network Rail. Phil and his team look after Network Rail’s employer brand, leading recruitment campaigns online, on social media, and in the press. Among other things, Phil shared his views on the current state of Rail recruitment, the impacts of Covid, Brexit and climate change, and his predictions for the industry in the next 12 months and beyond.

Thanks for joining us, Phil. To start, could you give us a snapshot of the current environment in Rail recruitment? What trends are you seeing at present and how do candidates perceive the industry?

We carried out some market segmentation a couple of years ago because we wanted to understand what our candidates and current staff thought about Rail. When we looked at the data, we found that the internal perception was very different to that on the outside. Externally, the rail industry is sometimes perceived as slower paced, and steady. Industry insiders see it as much more than that. We found that external candidates seem to think there are limited opportunities, but it’s a massive industry and there are so many important roles to fill. We need to give outsiders more of a window into what a career in Rail actually means, what pathways are available, and how their skills might transfer.

The big trend now is around rail modernisation. The landscape has changed significantly, especially since Covid, and we really need to articulate the pull factors to a career in Rail. We really need to understand the question that candidates ask. Typically, it’s always been “who are you?” and “why should I join you?” I think the question should be “why should I join you now?”

We need to explain what modernisation means, better communicate the roles and prospects in the

industry, let candidates know the great opportunities in Rail, and that if they join now, they’ll be joining at a time of modernisations. So, in 5-10 years they’ll be able to look back and see that they really helped to shape the modern railway.

Another trend is around market conditions and candidate behaviour. According to ONS, in December 2021 there were 29.5 million payrolled employees in the UK, that’s up 409,000 on precovid levels. The number of UK job vacancies is at a record 1.14 million. So, it’s not just Rail that is seeing a difficult market, it’s difficult for everyone. But that takes us back to the idea that we need to better articulate the opportunities in Rail and emphasise why candidates should join us now.

COMMENTARY

There’s a lot of talk about the ‘staffing crisis’ in Rail. Do you agree with this? What vacancies are you finding most challenging to fill and how is Network Rail addressing this?

I wouldn’t say there’s a staffing crisis, certainly not from what I’ve seen. But I suppose it’s all down to different perceptions. You will always get certain roles which are more difficult to recruit for. Tech, for example, is hugely, hugely competitive. Again, it’s about how you make an attractive proposition for someone who knows their worth. They know their skill set is in high demand so how do you create that pull?

Modernisation of the network does provide an opportunity to do that, but its down to us to articulate that. As for internal people, our colleagues, it’s about getting an answer to the question “why should I stay and be part of this?” Has the Covid situation impacted recruitment at Network Rail? How has the pandemic affected your recruitment strategy and process, and are you starting to see improvement in this respect?

Rail, very fortunately, was one of the few industries that kept running throughout the pandemic. So many industries shut down overnight, with dreadful effects for people up and down the country. But we saw that Rail really came into its own.

Although most people weren’t commuting because they were forced to work from home, Rail was hugely important in moving freight and key workers across the UK. We had frontline staff at our stations, signallers, and engineers out on track, all delivering an essential railway service while most of the country was shut down.

Off the back of that we launched our ‘We Matter to Millions’ brand campaign, which aimed to convey that deep sense of purpose of how much Rail does for Britain. That really struck a chord with people, both internally and externally. Previously, we had quite a fragmented approach to our market. We were running different campaigns with different messages. But this new campaign spreads the message that by joining Rail, you’re doing work that really matters to people. It’s about showing people there’s a sense of purpose in the work they’re doing.

In terms of the more immediate concerns, we had to adapt quickly from office based working to home working. That initially made some things quite tricky, such as interviews, assessment and selection,

and onboarding. The difficulty was how, at all of those touch points, to give candidates a sense of belonging to something. But I think we’ve managed that, and we’ve seen this new hybrid model of recruitment has bought a lot of benefits.

Prior to Covid, Britain’s withdrawal from the EU was taking up all the column inches. Do you believe that Brexit has exacerbated the skills shortage? What steps are Rail recruiters taking to mitigate the impact?

There has definitely been an influence, but it’s hard to know what the full impact of Brexit is or will be. Either way, I don’t think it changes our approach. We’ve got to articulate that a career in Rail is a great proposition for candidates. Whenever the market gets tough, you just have to rise to the challenge. We still need people in Rail and we’ve got to help candidates visualise themselves in the industry. Whether the challenge is Covid or Brexit, you’ve got to step up to it. There will be similar hurdles in future, you just need to adjust the sails.

Moving on to another headline issue, decarbonisation and the drive to net zero is becoming a greater priority for Rail. Do you see the industry using the green agenda to attract a new generation of recruits?

Personally, I think this is a great pull factor for candidates. A deeper sense of purpose is important when you’re looking to attract people or retain them. Many candidates want to be working in jobs where they’re doing something to help society. Today’s apprentices and graduates are very vocal about wanting to know our stance on sustainability and the environment.

Rail has a real opportunity to be a leader on the green agenda. How it articulates its commitment to the issue will make a difference on how we attract people to the industry, especially on the early careers side. We’re doing lots to push the green message, from storytelling about how one freight train can remove X number of lorries from the roads, to our ‘We Matter to Millions’ campaign. One of our pillars of that campaign is the idea that we can master our future, and we’re using individuals’ stories to articulate this. I think every industry can be doing more though.

The common view of Rail recruitment is that it’s about working to address the issue of an ageing workforce. Is that correct, and what approaches are recruiters taking to fill the skills gap?

There is a perception that the industry has an aging workforce, but I don’t think it’s necessarily limited to Rail. The first step in understanding what that means for recruitment and retention is to break down the data and identify areas where that might be a higher risk for us. Then we can look at the potential scenarios and build on that accordingly.

A priority is our internal mobility. We’ve got some programmes at the moment which look at the opportunities available for current employees in other departments or areas. If, for instance, you’re working in maintenance, there may be roles in operations that would appeal to you, but which you might not have even heard about. All we’re doing here is helping someone understand what a role involves and asking whether they could see themselves in that role. Once you’ve done that you can then look at things like upskilling programmes, leadership programmes. We’ve found that sharing our external recruitment content with our internal teams also helps with internal mobility.

On the flip side, you’ve got external attraction, so we’re talking about apprenticeships, graduate year-in-industry placements, and so on. Those sorts of placements offer a structured entry point into the industry. If you’re a graduate or apprentice and you’ve got Network Rail on your CV, that’s not a bad start at all.

What we’ve also found works well is connecting candidates to colleagues already doing the job. It’s all very well for me to go out there and say, “this is a great place to work,

here’s what you can do,” but candidates want to talk to someone in the role. We’re trying to do more to facilitate those conversations.

Equality, diversity, and inclusion (EDI) is a well-established and growing concern for all industries today. How does Network Rail and the wider industry approach these issues with regards to recruitment, and what more can be done to attract minority or marginalised candidates?

EDI is hugely important for us and I’ve seen progress, certainly since I started in the business. I remember visiting a Crossrail site in London, and in two hours I only saw one female engineer. This was good few years ago, but I was really shocked. Loraine Martins, Network Rail’s Director of Diversity and Inclusion absolutely lives and breathes the role and creates such a passion for diversity. She has definitely elevated EDI onto the board’s agenda, and I feel it’s really filtered down and we’re seeing positive changes.

One example of our focus on EDI is our ‘Everyone Matters’ strategy. This strategic programme is about us becoming an organisation that reflects the communities we serve, and our responsibilities there. Another programme, one we launched last year, is ‘Inclusive Recruitment’. Part of that was around training and education to remove bias, but also providing our people with the tools necessary to be objective and create greater diversity through their recruitment decisions.

An example is a recruitment campaign that we ran for Signallers, which aimed to increase diversity in this role. At the time, only 10% of signallers were female and only 1% were of Black, Asian and minority ethnicity. By the end of this campaign, we managed to increase female diversity in new recruits to 22% and we took Black, Asian and minority ethnicity offers to 7%. We did this just by making the process much more visible, much more authentic, and by putting in-role colleagues in touch with candidates and vice versa.

It’s not just about diversity and inclusivity though. It’s also about social mobility. How do you help people climb the social ladder? I don’t think there’s a quick fix for any of it, but we’re learning and improving.

Do you expect the formation of Great British Railways (GBR) to affect recruitment, both for your own organisation and the industry as a whole?

Overall, I think the answer is yes, absolutely. Passengers and freight users will welcome modernisation, and it’ll be to their benefit. Network Rail’s Chief Executive, Andrew Haines, is vocal that as an industry we are currently outdated. We’ve got outdated working practices, a large government subsidy, and we’re not necessarily serving passengers, taxpayers, or our colleagues in the way we could be. The whole point of modernisation is to correct this. The railway is vital to Britain, but we need to do things differently.

Coming back to recruitment, as I’ve mentioned it’s down to changing the narrative from “why should I join you?” to “why should I join you now?”. Some people are going to be excited about the prospect of shaping an industry, and modernisation is really going to call out to them. For others it’s about answering the questions around job security and how GBR will affect them. Most incoming candidates won’t necessarily know what GBR is. Currently, it must be quite confusing. We’ve got this existing organisation in Network Rail, but a shiny new organisation on the horizon. We need to define what that new proposition is for candidates.

On the retention side, we have employees wondering what the impact on Network Rail and other rail companies will be in the short-to-mid and mid-to-long-term future? We need to be very transparent about what this change means right now and what it will mean going forward. The moment you leave gaps in the narrative, people begin to fill the gaps themselves.

And finally, although it’s a tricky time to be making predictions, what recruitment trends do you expect to see in the next 12-18 months?

One thing I’ve learned with Brexit and Covid is that predictions are often quite far off the mark. That said, there’s currently a huge shift towards more agile working and I think that is going to be really key for employers going forward. People want the flexibility of being able to work at home or in the office. They may not like to do either full time, but they want the choice. I think any employer who’s too rigid in that respect will risk losing, rather than attracting, staff.

Sustainability is going to become more and more important. Candidates are already asking where we stand on the environment and what we’re doing to address the issue. And it’s not necessarily just about communicating this, it’s about putting your money where your mouth is and demonstrating what you’re delivering.

I expect recruitment strategies will continue to move into the digital sphere. That’s the way we’re moving, partly as a result of Covid, and it’s showing benefits. But it also means you have to up your game. People are creating more and more of their own content these days, and it’s much more authentic – the public can see through the polish of corporate communications. We’re getting more into the community aspect now, starting to engage more with people and start conversations. That approach definitely works in the Rail industry, which is like a big family. We want to invite more people into that family and make them feel part of it.

Mark Prescott joins Dual Inventive

Rail solutions provider Dual Inventive has appointed Mark Prescott as new international business development director.

Mark is charged with leading the company’s ongoing plans in the UK and accelerating the implementation of its technologies in the US and Australia.

Part of this project was the implementation of various systems to promote trackside safety during work, with much of Dual Inventive’s growth coming on the back of this programme.

Mark said: “Dual Inventive has grown fast the past few years. With my arrival I hope to herald the next phase for this fantastic organisation with so much potential. I look forward to consolidating our customer service provision in the UK and further expanding this great technology company outside of Europe, by accelerating the implementation of their technologies in the United States and Australia.”

Mark’s appointment comes as Dual Inventive increases its efforts to create awareness of its cloud platform and sees demand of its products and services rising sharply both in the UK and outside of Europe. The company employed 75 people in 2021 to take the total to 105 and doubled its turnover to £20 million.

Network Rail has installed many of Dual Inventive’s track circuit operating devices (TCOD), the ZKL 3000 RC, which is pre-installed and remotely operated across the UK rail network.

Jacob Zeeman, CEO of Dual Inventive, said: “Network Rail is a highly valued customer and we work together very transparently. The move by Mark Prescott to Dual Inventive brings us even closer together and will help us provide more relevant customer service.”

XEIAD welcomes new managing director

Paul Capener has been appointed as managing director at XEIAD.

Paul is an experienced engineer, manager, and business leader responsible for developing long term strategic partnerships to create sustainable value for all stakeholders. He is experienced in managing and coordinating major asset inspection and structural investigation contracts, and rail civils projects including major track renewal schemes.

Since Olivier Garrigue, chairman and chief executive, took control of XEIAD in 2013, Paul has been a major contributor to its ongoing successful growth, having recently led the award of several major multiyear framework contracts with key clients such as Network Rail and National Highways.

Going forward, Paul will focus on the company’s effectiveness and productivity to deliver on contractual promises made to all customers and to develop new and exciting opportunities for continued growth. Paul said: “I’ve been with XEIAD since the very early days, initially joining in 2004 and whilst progressing through to my most recent role of commercial director, I have continued to enjoy my time with the team. “As I enter my 25th year in the engineering industry, I’m proud to be leading the organisation alongside Olivier, as we enter a new era, with opportunities for further investment in growth and the launch of our Training Academy in February, it’s an exciting time.”

Lord McLoughlin confirmed as Chair of TfN

The North’s political and business leaders have approved the appointment of Lord Patrick McLoughlin as the next Chair of the Transport for the North (TfN) Partnership Board and Board.

Lord McLoughlin has had an extensive career in UK politics for more than 30 years, serving as the Member of Parliament for Derbyshire Dales between 1986 and 2019. His experience in Government included two years as Government Chief Whip from 2010 to 2012, two years as Chairman of the Conservative Party and Chancellor to the Duchy of Lancaster from 2016 to 2018 and four years as Secretary of State for Transport between 2012 and 2016.

He joins the regional transport body at a crucial time, with the organisation moving to a co-sponsor role on Northern Powerhouse Rail while seeking to secure continued investment in the region’s transport infrastructure to aid levelling up and boost economic growth.

Cllr Louise Gittins, Interim Chair of Transport for the North, said: “I’m pleased to be able to welcome Lord McLoughlin to Transport for the North as our new Chair. He has a wealth of experience in transport and the public sector, which I know will put him in good stead for this challenging and important role.”

Lord McLoughlin, said: “I feel very proud to have been selected as the Chair of Transport for the North. I believe firmly in the potential of the North of England and know from my personal experience and professional career just how vital reliable, cost-effective and sustainable transport is to people and business.

“A key focus for the TfN Board remains the need to press the case as to why its preferred approach to Northern Powerhouse Rail remains fundamental to securing the long-term economic future of the North. The government’s Integrated Rail Plan (IRP) goes against the best interest of people in the North and fails to deliver the step-change in rail services that is the only sustainable, longterm solution.”

Joanne Maguire to become ScotRail's chief operating officer

Joanne Maguire, current vice principal – resources at the University of the West of Scotland, has been named as the new chief operating officer of ScotRail.

She will take over from current chief operating officer Ian McConnell when Abellio hands over the franchise to Scottish Rail Holdings, the public body that will own and oversee ScotRail Trains.

Alex Hynes, managing director of Scotland’s Railway, said: “I am delighted we have managed to secure Joanne’s agreement to join ScotRail Trains at what is a very exciting time for Scotland’s Railway. Joanne brings a wealth of leadership experience to this role, which will be vital as we transition to the new public body.

“From the outset it was clear Joanne has the skills, determination, and energy needed to lead ScotRail Trains as it seeks to recover from the pandemic and give customers the safe and reliable service they deserve. I am really excited to welcome Joanne to the team.”

Joanne said: “I am excited to take up my role at ScotRail Trains. Throughout the pandemic, the railway has played a vital role in keeping key workers moving, connecting communities, and supporting the economy during challenging times. I know from my own experience as a passenger how passionate railway staff are about their role in keeping Scotland moving safely while delivering good customer service, and I cannot wait to join the team and engage with colleagues across the organisation.”

New RAIB Chief Inspector

Andrew Hall has been appointed chief inspector of rail accidents at Rail Accident Investigation Branch (RAIB). He will replace Simon E French OBE, who retires on 31 March after nearly 18 years.

Andrew will take up the role on 1 April, until then he will continue in his role as deputy chief inspector. He has worked at RAIB since 2004 and been the deputy chief inspector at RAIB since 2015. Andrew is a chartered electrical engineer with many years’ experience in the rail sector in Britain and overseas. “It is a great privilege to be selected to lead the Branch,” said Andrew. “Simon will be a hard act to follow, but whoever the Chief Inspector is, RAIB’s core role, to investigate accidents in order to improve safety and inform, remains.”

Crago becomes managing director at MacRail

Adam Crago has been appointed as managing director at MacRail, succeeding Tim Westwood who is retiring from the firm.

Adam has been with MacRail for 12 years, starting on the front line in the Control Room and progressing through many roles, most recently operations director.

Adam said, “I am very pleased to have been offered this opportunity and I look forward to working with the MacRail team to continue to grow the business. Hopefully, the knowledge that I have gained during my career with MacRail will be invaluable as managing director. I would like to thank Tim for the mentoring and support that he has provided during my career journey”

Steve Featherstone, Chair of MacRail, said, “I would like to thank Tim for his great service to MacRail and wish him well for his retirement. It is great to be Chair of a company that values internal talent management and succession planning the way that MacRail does. Adam’s journey from the frontline to managing director is a great example of what is possible when you join a company that cares about its people. I look forward to working with Adam and his team and to helping Adam to be successful in his new role.”

New Route Services managing director at Network Rail

Network Rail has confirmed that Rob Morton has been appointed as the new managing director for Route Services, replacing Susan Cooklin, who is leaving the organisation after 16 years.

Rob joined Network Rail as supply chain director in June 2017. Over the past five years, he has spearheaded Network Rail’s relationships and commercial arrangements with suppliers, led a supply chain cost reduction programme that saved £330 million, and improved Network Rail’s logistics capability.

Commenting on his appointment, Rob said: “I am delighted to be succeeding Susan as managing director of Route Services and can’t wait to get started. While we are facing some challenges as we emerge from the Covid-19 pandemic, it is an exciting time to be working in the rail industry. The Route Services function is a major part of Network Rail and has an important role to play in creating a more reliable and efficient railway. I look forward to playing my part in delivering that as we all work towards a Great British Railway.”

Andrew Haines, Network Rail chief executive, added: “I am really pleased that Rob will join my Executive Leadership Team and lead our Route Services function. His leadership, diligence, experience and detailed knowledge of Route Services will be vital in continuing Susan’s work.”